A Short Long Life

It was a sunny morning, at 6 a.m. The golden sunshine penetrated the hospital’s room by the windows, revealing a little dust in the air. “It’s a girl”, said the doctor. The newlywed couple had decided to know the child’s sex in the moment of the birth. Now, the mother picked up her baby, who cried out loud, and she shook the baby’s arms slightly, laughing and crying at the same time. Her husband, next to her, put his hand in her shoulder, caressing the baby’s face with all love of the world. They were sure they were the happiest people who world had ever seen. In the bosom of that love, the baby calmed down bit by bit, opening his eyes, green eyes, to see those so lovely and thrilled people. And she, just a little girl, smiled for the first time.

           It was a rainy morning, at 10 a.m. The beautiful song of the water dropping on the ceiling was the soundtrack to the boy who played alone in his bedroom. With some toys in shape of animals and heroes, he imagined all a world in his head, a fantastic world where there were many wars, but the good always won the evil. In his eyes, brown eyes, the real world wasn’t so much different from the fantasy. It had less magic, indeed, and the animals didn’t speak. But, just like in the fantasy, the entire world is a little charmed if you have hope, and in the last battle, the love will still win.

           It was a cloudy afternoon, at 2 p.m. The sky was closed; the weather seemed sad and quiet. But, inside house, the young friends laughed overjoyed. They had known each other few months ago, and now they were best friends. She had a medium, smooth and blonde hair, green eyes, white skin and pinky mouth; she was medium in stature, a little skinny, and loved to wear jeans and pink blouses. He had a large, thin and black hair, brown eyes and skin and dark mouth; he was tall, a little fat, and loved to wear shorts and sleeveless shirts. They were fallen in love with each other, but none of them knew it. They played together, talked about books, movies and series, created fiction stories and flirt innocently, like two kids.

           It was a foggy evening, at 6 p.m. The wet and white fog covered the street when she went to his house. He opened the door, happy, but saw her crying outside. She hugged him, involving his neck with her arms and touching his cheek with hers. It was wet by the tears. “What happened?”, he asked. But a black car came along and honked. She moved away from the hug, looking down. He asked again: “What happened? Talk to me”. She breathed deeply and, looking into his eyes, those strong eyes, brown like the profundity of earth, found hers, those charming eyes, green like the Northern Lights. “I have to go…”, she said. And, running, she came back to the car, leaving him standing, confused and paralyzed, at the front door. She moved out without explanation and they lost contact. He regretted for a long time never have said “Goodbye” and “I love you”.

           It was a starry evening, at 10 p.m. He was lying at the beach’s sand, beholding the stars. They were really shining in that night. The sea’s sound filled his ears with peace and tranquility, but also filled his heart with old memories. He closed his eyes. There was a long, long time since that evening, when she left him. Would he, someday, forget her? Would he, somehow, move on without her anymore? Or would he, forever, live in the shadow of her presence, with that ghost of the past? He asked himself. “Does she remember me? Does she think about me?”, he thought. “Stupid…”, he laugh at himself. He opened his eyes when he heard sounds of steps on the sand next to him. He had a glimpse of a golden hair flying above him. A gorgeous woman was there, next to him. She wore a white hat, which she was holding with a hand, strapless red bikini and a white beach yoke swaying in the wind. He got up, stunned, and she said: “Such a long time, isn’t it?”. He embraced her so strongly, and cried silently; the tears rolled in her shoulder and back. She hugged back so much affectionately, saying “I’m so sorry” repeated times.

           It was a dark night, at 2 a.m. He was lying at a hospital’s bed. She was holding his hand firmly while he slept. He woke up slowly, opening his eyes with difficulty. The same brown eyes that so many years ago had charmed her. She fixed his white hair and caressed his head. “How do you feel, my love?”, she asked. Her voice was now affected for the age, but to him, it was the same sweet voice of the youth. “How could I feel bad with you by my side, honey?”, he said. She smiled, but he coughed in the respirator. “Should I call the doctor?”, she asked, worried. “No, sweetheart, it’s not necessary.”, he answered. After a brief moment in silence, he spoke again: “Listen to me, honey… I had many regrets in my life. But I think… No, I’m sure, that the major regret was not to enjoy my time with you, before you left that time”. “Don’t speak more, honey, you can’t…”, she tried talking to him, but he held tight her hand and she, reluctant, understood and left him continuing. “But I’m happy now… I’m so happy for God had given me another chance. The chance to do the right thing this time, the chance to have you as my loved wife… The chance to enjoy being with you, by your side, spending every second of my time with you and for you. You know that I’m going away, don’t you?”. Tears streamed down her face and she could not answer that. He continued: “I just want to say you, my dear love… Goodbye and I love you”. At that moment, he smiled, his brown eyes didn’t close again, and his hand could not hold hers anymore.